Abstract

Community college presidents face an uphill struggle in preparing their institutions for the rapidly changing technological learning environment. Visionary presidents in rural community colleges are presented with yet another challenge: that of finding themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide. This article describes how presidents of 12 rural community colleges in the mountains of western North Carolina formed a technology consortium to collaboratively address critical technology issues. Integral steps in the joint venture were a combined assessment and planning process authorized by the presidents, formation of the Western North Carolina Technology Consortium, and an e-commerce project designed to meet the needs of small businesses and entrepreneurs in the region. Lessons learned and implications for practice are presented for community college presidents seeking ways to collaborate.

Citation

Sink, D.W., Jackson, K.L., Boham, K.A. & Shockley, D. (2004). The Western North Carolina Technology Consortium: A Collaborative Approach to Bridging the Digital Divide. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 28(4), 321-329. Retrieved August 11, 2024 from https://www.learntechlib.org/p/98141/.

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Keywords

• College Presidents
• Community Colleges
• Consortia
• educational technology
• Small Businesses
• Web Sites